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Oban plans sculpture on Pulpit Hill
Friday 8th May 2009
The lacing drama of net casting with tangled fish
A dramatic sculpture to rival Gateshead’s famous Angel of the North could soon command Pulpit Hill if tourism group Oban Forward gets the go-ahead. A 50-foot high sculpture of a fisherman casting his net over Oban Bay would be the second highest piece of public art in Britain topped only by the extra 16ft high Angel of the North. Proposed by the Oban Forward group (no website yet, alas!). The alternative way to create jobs - might be to spend the £1m on work in McCaig's folly Tower, originally planned to be a museum housed in the structure along with a central tower, and for statues to be erected in the windows ( some sources say on the parapet ) overlooking the city. It could celebrate the Scottish Diasapora, provide jobs and be a multiplier factor for several sectors to generate revenue. Or what about raising a light projection sculpture to attract visitors to Scotland's dark winters as they did with a sea monster in Tokyo harbour?
The sculpture on Pulpit Hill (right) visible from land and sea from as far away as Mull and Ben Nevis – would cost around £1m, and its supporters believe it would have priceless benefits for tourism in Oban and Argyll.
‘If we get this right it would attract tourists from around the world,’ said Oban Forward member Callum MacLeod of Piazza Restaurant. ‘It is the best idea to come out of the town for a long time. It is incredibly bold and exciting. ‘The sculpture needs to be a bronze or metal structure that shouts out the character and culture of the area.’
MacLeod is among a group of Oban businessmen and councillors who belong to a relaunched Oban Forward group determined to see Oban maximise its huge tourism potential. They say the modern sculpture would 
complement the striking McCaig’s Tower (left) sitting on a nearby hill, with both overlooking the stunning Oban Bay.
Oban man Ranald MacColl has already drawn up provisional plans for a large Rubanesque man, akin to artist Peter Howieson’s figures, casting a huge net interwoven with fish over the bay of Oban from Pulpit Hill. MacColl recently completed the GI Bride sculpture at Glasgow’s Partick Underground Station.
"Oban shouldn’t rest on its laurels, the Scottish government is encouraging applications for funding for public art,' says one backer, councillor Neil Mackay. Councillors pointed to the controversy caused when McCaig’s (Folly) Tower was built in 1897 for the sum of £5,000 and yet it is now a world-famous feature of Oban’s skyline.
Oban Forward member Paul Sloan of Cuan Mor Restaurant said: ‘The matter will be discussed at the Forward meeting. The sculpture really would have to be something of iconic dimensions to make it work.’
Already Oban Forward has started to market Oban as the Seafood Capital of Scotland and is examining ways of boosting the town’s appearance.
A cruise ship ambassador is another idea. ‘There are nine or 10 ships expected into Oban this summer,’ said Mr Mackay. '‘We need the help, support and ideas from everyone in the town; so many small and big businesses are relying on tourism.’
Left: Atlabnet
Source: Oban Times
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